Let me tell you a story about an old man who lived in a small village
somewhere that does not matter. It all began when the man’s sons came to
him and told him that some people from the neighboring village had
stolen a chicken from their farm. The old man told his sons to go after
the thieves and recover the chicken.
The
sons said, “Father, it’s only one chicken. We have hundreds of chicken.
One won’t make a difference.” The old man said, “Do what you please.”
A
few days later, the thieves stole a goat. Once again the old man told
his sons to not let them get away with it. The sons said that they have
dozens of goats and it’s not worth the trouble. The next week it was a
horse. Once again the sons rationalized it away saying that they still
had six horses that the farm needs.
Finally,
the next week the sons came back to report to the old man and said,
“Father, our sister has been abducted. What shall we do?” The old man
said, “It’s too late. You should have recovered the chicken. Now there’s
nothing you can do.”